Two new rail franchises are starting in Scotland as successors to the FirstGroup contract which was launched more than a decade ago. The main franchise remains known as ScotRail. It will be run by Abellio, the international arm of Dutch Railways, from tomorrow. The Caledonian Sleeper services, which have been part of the main ScotRail franchises since 1997, become separate for the first time and from tonight will be operated by Serco.

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Tue, 31 Mar 2015 09:19:00 GMTThe Department for Transport has denied reports that Network Rail could be returned to the private sector. Various possibilities are said to be on the table, including dividing NR into regions as well as the more extreme option of involving the private sector once again. The RMT union said it would 'fight these moves'.
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http://www.railnews.co.uk/news/2015/03/30-network-rail-privatisation-rumour-rejected.html
Mon, 30 Mar 2015 08:47:00 GMT

The countdown is on over a controversial plan to build a new railfreight terminal in Hertfordshire. A proposed scheme on a disused airfield at Radlett, south of St Albans on the Midland Main Line, already has a tangled legal history. The proposal was first made nine years ago, when the freehold of the land was transferred to Hertfordshire County Council, but with a 21-year covenant attached. The controversy has been reinforced by a determined local campaign to block the scheme, including a petition which has most recently attracted more than 1,800 signatures in 24 hours.

A House of Lords Committee has concluded that the Government has 'yet to make a convincing case' for investing Â£50 billion in HS2. The figure includes rolling stock and large contingency margins, but the report suggests that the 'huge' public subsidy to HS2, an estimated net Â£31.5 billion, conflicts with the Government's declared objective of making rail less dependent on public subsidy. The Committee's chairman said: "We have set out a number of important questions on HS2 that the Government must now provide detailed answers to. Parliament should not approve the enabling legislation that will allow HS2 work to begin until we have satisfactory answers to these key questions." The DfT has responded that the case for HS2 remains 'crystal clear'.

Network Rail has become subject to the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act from today. NR must now respond to FOI requests within 20 working days, and publish its responses. The range of information is wide and covers any qualifying data held by Network Rail, including historical information. The company launched a voluntary Transparency Programme in June 2012, when it began to publish more of its information and data on its website.

New Bombardier Electrostars are included in the plans for the new First Great Western franchise, which will be a boost for jobs in Derby. The main fleets for long-distance services are set to be Intercity Expresses and hybrid AT300s, both from Hitachi, but eight more four-car Class 387s are being ordered from Bombardier for Thames Valley electric services. They will be added to the fleet of 29 Class 387s which is to be transferred from Thameslink.

FIRSTGROUP has reached agreement with the DfT for a further Intercity Great Western contract, after months of detailed negotiations. The new contract runs until April 2019. The GW network faces major changes between now and 2019, including electrification and new Intercity Express trains.

The Department for Transport has moved forward with its franchising programme by extending the First TransPennine Express contract by a year to 1 April 2016. The widely-expected agreement means that FTPE will now end at the same time as Northern. First said it would continue with various improvements between now and 2016, including the extension of free WiFi at stations. It is also shortlisted for the next franchise.

Ministers are publishing plans for a multi-billion upgrade of the rail network in the north of England today. They include a â€˜TransNorthâ€™ network – with sections capable of speeds up to 225kmh (140mph) - linking Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield, Newcastle and Hull. But shadow rail minister Lilian Greenwood said the Northern Hub project was in danger of falling behind schedule because of the delay in gaining Transport and Works Act approval. She also warned that the cost of electrification in the west of England is set to double.

The route of an extension to Midland Metro in Birmingham has been chosen after a public consultation. Centro has now announced that a new tram route will run along High Street Deritend. The headline cost will be Â£130 million, but that includes some additional trams. The line will improve connections to the new HS2 station at Curzon Street as well as the city's coach station at Digbeth.

The biggest investment for decades on one of the busiest main line railways in Britain has moved a step closer with the appointment of a team of contractors who will be responsible for planning and carrying out major improvement works at London Waterloo. The railway from Waterloo carries more than half a million passengers every day and more than 222 million every year, an increase of more than 100 per cent in just the last 20 years. Waterloo is also the UKâ€™s busiest station, with 98 million passengers in 2013/14 and a train arriving or departing virtually every minute during peak times.

Network Rail has announced a new plan to improve station working at London Bridge, after repeated disruptions in recent weeks. The major reconstruction of the station as part of the Thameslink Programme means that pairs of platforms must be successively closed, and the reduced capacity has meant that there is very little room for recovery when things go wrong. Labour MPs are also meeting the transport secretary today, to demand action over the continuing problems.

The Department for Transport has said it remains 'confident' in the chairman and chief executive of Network Rail, following reports that there are high-level concerns about the management of Network Rail and the possibility of DfT intervention. As NR is now a government body in the public sector, the transport secretary can exercise his right to appoint a 'special director' to the main Network Rail board who would be expected to monitor the company's management strategy from the point of view of the Department for Transport, but no decision has yet been announced.

A government-sponsored competition to encourage innovation in the rail industry has been launched by rail minister Claire Perry, who has called for 'departures from the norm'. The Department for Transport said the Â£6 million project was intended to 'spur innovation' among train operators to meet the challenges of growing demand for rail travel while also improving standards.

A new report says that railfreight is now contributing some Â£1.6 billion to the British economy every year. The figure is an estimate of the benefits, which include reduced road congestion and favourable environmental factors. Two years ago these benefits were valued at Â£1.5 billion, but the sector has continued to grow since then. The report comes from the Rail Delivery Group, which says the five major railfreight operators between them move goods worth more than Â£30 billion each year.

Network Rail has revealed that engineering works over the Easter holiday will involve 14,000 people and more than Â£100 million worth of investment. Following the problems with engineering overruns after Christmas, the infrastructure owner is emphasising that transport is being co-ordinated to ensure that 'Britain keeps moving' over Easter, even though fewer people than usual use the railways because most commuters do not travel.

Plans for Police Scotland to take over from British Transport Police north of the border have come under fire in some quarters, being described as â€˜sadâ€™ and â€˜prematureâ€™, but the Scottish Government has issued a reassurance that BTPâ€™s special industry knowledge and skills will not be lost. The BTP has been responsible for policing the Scottish network since it replaced the former railway company forces in the early 1950s.

A main line which was threatened by a landslip in a cutting between Leamington Spa and Banbury at the end of January has reopened. The movement of more than 350,000 tonnes of spoil at Harbury meant that more than 130 trains a day had been diverted, and for a while Network Rail had predicted that the line would not be safe to use again until just before Easter. The first train to use the line with passengers on board this morning was the 05.15 Chiltern service from Birmingham Moor Street to London Marylebone.

The first new Intercity Express train built by Hitachi in Japan has been unloaded in Britain. It was unloaded from a transporter ship at Southampton today in front of a welcoming committee led by rail minister Claire Perry. Although the first Class 800 unit was completed at Hitachi's Kasado works in Japan, most of the 122 trains, which are intended for the Great Western and East Coast Main Lines, will be assembled at a new Â£82 million plant in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham.